Severe mental illness is associated with a cardiovascular mortality rate twice that of the general population, driven by shared biological, genetic, and behavioral mechanisms.
Severe mental illness is associated with a twofold increase in cardiovascular mortality, highlighting the critical need for targeted cardiovascular prevention and management strategies in this high-risk population.
People with severe mental illness, consisting of schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depression, have a high burden of modifiable cardiovascular risk behaviors and conditions and have a cardiovascular mortality rate twice that of the general population. People with acute and chronic cardiovascular disease are at a higher risk of developing mental health symptoms and disease. There is emerging evidence for shared etiological factors between severe mental illness and cardiovascular disease that includes biological, genetic, and behavioral mechanisms. This state-of-the art review will describe the relationship between severe mental illness and cardiovascular disease, explore the factors that lead to poor cardiovascular outcomes in people with severe mental illness, propose strategies to improve the cardiovascular health of people with severe mental illness, and present areas for future research focus.
Goldfarb et al. (Mon,) conducted a review in Severe mental illness and cardiovascular disease. Severe mental illness vs. General population was evaluated on Cardiovascular mortality. Severe mental illness is associated with a cardiovascular mortality rate twice that of the general population, driven by shared biological, genetic, and behavioral mechanisms.